As you remember and celebrate the ultimate life-giving sacrifice of Jesus’ death and resurrection on the cross this Easter, consider your volunteers. Your volunteers make ministry possible year-round. You’re probably asking even more from them now to provide Easter services, programs, and events. As you thank the Lord for his ultimate provision for us, thank Him for your volunteers, and honor them as you do so. During the Easter season, you have unique opportunities to point your volunteers and their families toward the gospel.
Keep reading to discover three key ways to honor your volunteers before Easter is over.
Prayer
Your volunteers need your prayer over them this Easter season. Pray that their families would rejoice in the resurrection of Jesus. Pray that their extended family would gather peacefully. Pray that their children would know and celebrate the gospel more than tradition.
In addition to praying for your volunteers, pray about them – about how you treat and think about them. Pray for your heart over their work. Pray that the Lord would provide volunteers where you need them, to allow you to be flexible and accommodate their busy schedules when they can’t be there over Easter. Pray for personalized ways to honor them this season. Without prayer, all your other efforts to support your volunteers are in vain. Prayer aligns your heart with the Lord’s. Pray that you would see each of them how He does.
Gift Thoughtfully
If you choose to give to honor your volunteers on Easter, give something useful or purposeful. Here are a few ideas:
- Flowers — Giving flowers will help families who are hosting Easter brunch in particular. The flowers you give can beautify their home or even save them a trip to the store after church. Especially if you are already planning to have fresh flowers at your Easter services, plan to give them away at the end as a blessing to your volunteers.
- Gospel-Centered Conversation Guides — Share guides your volunteers can use to inspire gospel conversations. You can provide conversation guides for parents about the meaning of Easter, geared toward small children. You can provide table-talk questions for the “adult table.” You can share scripture and commentary blurbs to read with family. The easiest part about sending handouts as gifts is that you can be as structured or informal as you want. Feel free to send these resources as PDFs or simply write them into an email.
- Books — Stock up on biblically relevant books to guide volunteers and their families toward the true meaning of Easter. There are tons of picture books you can share for parents to read to their families. Share your favorite reads and gospel-centered devotionals. Thoughtful books as gifts are sure to enrich your volunteers’ homes and spiritual lives.
Handwrite Your Gratitude
Holidays are always a prime opportunity to express your appreciation for volunteers. Handwritten thank you cards communicate genuine gratitude to your volunteers. Easter particularly is the perfect time to write out specific prayers for each volunteer’s family as they celebrate together. Utilize this opportunity to write encouragement about your volunteers’ character and devotion. Ultimately, the heart of your letter should point each volunteer to the resurrection.
The bottom line is that Easter is a prime opportunity to live out your team’s heart to care for your volunteers. An essential quality at the core of your team’s culture should be a desire to honor each other. Remember that gratitude for your team should extend beyond your paid employees. You probably could not function without the generosity and devotion of your beloved volunteers. Let your gratitude to God for his resurrection and many blessings over your ministry overflow as gratitude for each of your volunteers. Your gratitude toward your volunteers should point them right back to the ultimate generosity of Jesus Christ that we celebrate on Easter morning.
